My name is Anna Dovbysh. I am a citizen of Ukraine and I am 29 years old. I work as a content manager and copywriter. I’m currently in Prague with a friend. I arrived here yesterday or the day before. I don’t remember exactly. Before that I was in a refugee shelter on the Romanian border. It’s all part of my multi-day escape from Kyiv.
I can clearly remember the first minutes of the war. I don’t think I’ll ever really forget her. I was woken up at 5am by a neighbor knocking on my door. I was sound asleep and my phone was on airplane mode. That’s why my parents couldn’t reach me. When I opened the door, the first thing he said was “The war has started.” And I couldn’t believe it. I just couldn’t believe it. Then I immediately called my parents and they told me I had to pack everything. I should pick up my grandma, who lives near me, and evacuate her. So I packed eight suitcases in 20 minutes.
It was very difficult because I had to convince my grandma to go. But it worked. Luckily a friend was able to take us to the country where my parents live. Then we were all together.
It’s 5:35 am and we’re hiding under our house now because we heard some very, very powerful explosions. That was so scary. Like something I’ve never heard before in my life.
You literally feel like you could die at any moment. The explosions are so powerful and loud that our windows shook. The metal door of our basement was shaking. Your heart stops beating. It just drives you crazy because you’re waiting for another bomb at any moment. When the bombing started again, I just fell to the ground and couldn’t move. I just started crying. It’s terrible. It’s very traumatizing. It is. Yes, it’s… it’s terrible.
In the beginning we stayed in the house and couldn’t go out because it was too dangerous. A few days later we realized we were running out of food. So me and my dad decided to check if any shops are still open. We were just outside of Kyiv so food deliveries probably hadn’t gotten through yet. In one shop there was just a yoghurt on the shelf. A single yogurt. And I was deeply shocked. I really thought we were going to starve. Then we drove to another supermarket and had to wait a long time to even get in. The supermarket baked some bread themselves and people fought for it because each person was only supposed to get a loaf or two. That was really intense. Such situations – where food is lacking – show how people lose their minds. War has so many facets. It’s not just about the actual combat operations. It’s also about breaking the humanity of the populace and turning them into such paranoid, hungry monsters.
It was like the hardest decision I’ve ever had to make in my entire life. When I left my father as we drove away, he stood there and waved at us. I just couldn’t stop crying. I don’t know if I’ll ever see him again. My grandma, my brother and his little daughter who was born just a month ago.
We decided to leave because I thought I would go crazy otherwise. I just couldn’t stand the noise of the explosions. I had nightmares that someone would break into our home, that we would be killed or raped. So we packed and left for the Kiev train station. Everything was full of people. All these pictures with thousands of people on the platforms are true. I was one of them. We then tried in vain to get on four different trains. It did not work. There were just too many people. Finally we pushed ourselves into a train and sat on the floor. I’m still very glad that we got a train and were able to escape. Some of my friends still haven’t made it.
An hour after we left the train, we got the news that one of the bombs had hit the station. I feel like it really is a miracle from God. I’m not a very religious person. But I’m just starting to believe in every angel and all of that. And yes… I have a feeling that someone is protecting us here.
Thousands of people fled with us to the western part of Ukraine. When we got there, we stayed at the train station because of the curfew. Then we were taken in by a nunnery in the western part of Ukraine. That too is very symbolic. Because after the hell we’ve been through, we come to a holy place to start a new life.
Hello, everyone. I am recording this video from Prague, Czech Republic, where I was staying with a friend. I arrived here yesterday, having previously entered Romania via the Ukrainian border. I spent two days in a refugee shelter in Romania. I was helped there by such great volunteers – just as they are helping thousands of Ukrainians crossing the border right now. I thank you from the bottom of my heart. I want to let you know that I really have thought so many times in the last twelve days that I’m actually going to die. I really thought I couldn’t do it. But I did it. I survived and here I am. In Europe.
I just felt like what we’re going through is so incredible that some people just can’t believe it’s actually happening in this world. I probably wouldn’t have believed it myself that someone would have to hide in an air raid shelter in the 21st century. So I decided to share my experience. It was so overwhelming for me and so hard to comprehend that I had this tremendous support from people – people I know and people I don’t know. And it helped me get through this whole situation.
I’m not worried about myself. I’m worried about my parents, my father and my grandma who are still in Ukraine. My father put a mattress by the window because he’s afraid of gunshots. It’s crazy to think about. It’s crazy to talk to him and remember how we used to ride bikes in peace, take walks together. It all just feels surreal. It feels totally surreal.
For now, I hope that no more people will die and that this war will end as soon as possible. And that those responsible for the war are paying the full price.
Source: Stern
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